Chapter 37: Accidentally Discovered Origins

Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Accidentally Discovered Origins

Lin Zhengran walked down the street, holding a large slice of strawberry cake. Using a fork, he scooped off small pieces, taking his time as he swallowed it all down. It was delicious, if a bit too sweet.

[Today is Miss Jiang’s birthday. As a companion who has roamed the Jianghu with you for a long time, she specially spent a fortune to obtain two theater viewing spots and invited you to attend the show together. After watching, your Charm +2, Physical Strength +1.]

[Miss Jiang also gifted you the Seven-Colored Snow Oil Ointment, which she can only eat once a year. This item is of excellent quality. Upon consuming it, your cultivation base will rapidly increase, granting Spiritual Qi level +1, Strength +1, and Energy +1.]

After finishing the cake in his hand, the sweetness left a cloying taste in his mouth. He decided to drop by a nearby supermarket to buy a couple of bottles of water. He had only taken a few steps when he suddenly heard an argument in the distance. It seemed to be an unmarried couple bickering about something.

The woman spoke, exasperated, "I really never expected that you’ve been secretly raising a daughter! And to keep it from me, you even sent her to school out of town? If I hadn’t found out myself, how long were you planning to hide this from me? How can you expect me to marry you like this?"

The man, standing next to an Audi, explained, "I’ve told you countless times on the way here. She’s not my daughter; she’s my niece. I’m her uncle."

"Oh, so you do remember that you’re just her uncle?! It’s not like she doesn’t have a mother, so why do you have to be the one taking care of her?"

The man looked a bit guilty, and his speaking style wasn’t exactly forceful. "Y-you’re being a bit unreasonable, aren’t you? Why do I raise her? It’s simply because my sister wanted to abandon the child back then. I felt sorry for her, so I paid for her education and raised her."

The woman raised a hand, seemingly not wanting to fight either. "You don’t need to give me these excuses. I’m not an unreasonable person. Like I said, I can understand these things. I can even understand that you hid the fact you were raising this child from me out of the goodness of your heart. But Han City, as long as you keep providing for her, my parents will never agree to let me marry you."

She coaxed, "Han City, you’ve done more than enough. This is just that child’s fate. She’ll graduate from middle school in two years. When the time comes, I can also give her some money to let her fend for herself. If she’s destined to go to high school, she can work part-time to support her studies, and we can sponsor her. If not, she can just get a job after graduation. But no matter what, she absolutely cannot live with you anymore. Otherwise... Otherwise, when the baby in my belly is born..." She cradled her stomach. "How will others look at me? How am I supposed to explain it to my parents? Are you really going to take care of that girl for the rest of your life?"

"I..."

"Since we’re already here, we might as well just tell her the truth. You and I will support her until she graduates from middle school. After that, we’ll give her a lump sum of money. From then on, she can come visit our family during holidays, but you can’t let her live in our house every day. She has to live her own life. If you can’t bring yourself to say it, I’ll say it for you."

Because this road was the only way to the supermarket, Lin Zhengran had heard practically the entire conversation as he walked by. He even saw the woman look back over her shoulder.

"She’s here. I’ll go talk to her; just stand aside and watch." She was comforting her fiancé, though it seemed like she was comforting herself as well. "I don’t think we’re being too harsh. She’s practically grown up by now, right?"

Lin Zhengran had already walked a fair distance away, but hearing this, he still glanced back. However, when he saw the face of the girl the two were discussing, he was extremely surprised, and the system’s voice chimed in accordingly.

[Lately, the Demon Sect Witch has been frequently appearing by your side. Today, you set out for cultivation, never expecting to run into her here again. By chance, you have eavesdropped on the Demon Sect Witch’s origins. The sect’s stewards actually want to kick her out of the Demon Sect. You know well that it is not easy to interfere in this matter. Therefore, whether you take action or not, both choices will lead to different karmic encounters.]

In the distance, the girl walking over in a school uniform had a slender figure and an elegant temperament. Naturally, it was Han Wenwen. Today, she looked the same as always. She wore a faint smile on her face, her fox-like eyes captivating, acting as if nothing in the world could bother her.

Stepping up to the man and woman, Han Wenwen even offered a polite half-bow. "Uncle, you’re here. You must be Aunt. Nice to meet you."

The woman was shocked that the girl was so exceptionally beautiful; sure enough, she took after her stunningly gorgeous but morally corrupt mother. She glanced back at the man, stepped forward, and smiled.

"Hello, Wenwen, you’re so pretty. Today is our first time meeting, and Aunt wants to tell you something. Rationally speaking, Aunt shouldn’t be bringing this up upon our first meeting, but Aunt has her own difficulties too. If you have any thoughts after hearing this, you can share them with me..."

Lin Zhengran didn’t hear what they said after that. By the time he came out of the supermarket with the water he bought, Han Wenwen’s uncle and aunt had already driven away. Han Wenwen stood by the side of the road, her expression exactly the same as when she had arrived. It was as if she had expected all of this long ago.

She walked forward, passing the supermarket. Seeing Lin Zhengran stepping out, she tilted her head and smiled in surprise. "Lin Zhengran? What a coincidence."

Lin Zhengran smiled. "It really is."

Han Wenwen’s expression revealed a hint of fatigue. "It’s exactly like last year. I always manage to bump into you in all sorts of places. But I’m a little tired today and want to head back to school to rest, so I won’t stick around to chat. See you at school tonight."

She waved her hand, her fox-like eyes gazing into the distance as she walked toward the school. It was almost impossible to tell that she had just gone through such a major event.

Lin Zhengran unscrewed the cap of his water, took a sip, and turned to leave with an emotionless expression.

That afternoon, Jiang Xueli happily hid in her bedroom. Sitting on her bed, she carefully unwrapped the gift Lin Zhengran had given her. The yellow over-ear headphones featured a simple yet elegant design. Jiang Xueli put them on to test the sound. It was incredibly wonderful. Lying happily on her bed, she recalled everything that had happened today. Raising her hand and spreading her fingers, she thought, "So what if I’m a tsundere? I, Jiang Xueli, will never be a losing dog! I’m definitely going to win!" She clenched her fist tightly.

On Sunday evenings, middle school students had evening self-study sessions. Except for day students, everyone had to attend.

When Jiang Xueli and Lin Zhengran took a car to school together, Xiao Heqing and Han Wenwen were waiting at the school gate, each holding a gift to hand to Jiang Xueli.

"Happy birthday, Jiang Xueli."

Jiang Xueli was flattered. "This... How did you two know..."

Xiao Heqing, looking well-behaved, said softly, "Didn’t I follow Lin Zhengran home on Saturday? He told me today was your birthday, so I specifically bought you a gift. It’s not expensive, but it’s the thought that counts."

Han Wenwen smiled and nodded. "Same here. We’re all friends, so giving a birthday gift is only natural."

"Th-thank you guys..." Jiang Xueli accepted them bashfully.

Standing to the side, Lin Zhengran scrutinized Han Wenwen’s seemingly normal demeanor. At only twelve years old, he marveled at how this fox’s psychological fortitude was on a completely different level compared to He Qing and Jiang Xueli.

However, feigned strength was ultimately still fake. The armor worn over her heart was paper-thin; otherwise, she wouldn’t have had that expression when she left that afternoon.